Bonded
by sleeping-slytherins
Summary: "So are we-?" She questioned looking at him. "Bonded, yeah." He whispered back three-shot dramione complete
1. Chapter 1

_**CHAPTER ONE**_

Vitiligo. Seven different doctors, the same basic answer. It did not make sense to Hermione how she had only one small, perfectly round patch of white on her left forearm, about the size of two pounds. It didn't hurt, or itch, or irritate her at all, it was just there. Her parents said she was not born with it, that it showed up randomly one summer before she turned one. The doctors, again, said it was common for that to happen, and logically her parents probably missed that one part of her forearm with sunscreen on a sunny day out. Hermione, has always been a logical girl though, and it wasn't logical for her parents to miss a perfect circle on her arm, and it just so happened to give her vitiligo. It didn't bother her to have the round patch, it bother her that she didn't know what it truly was, aggravating her curiosity. Eventually her parents stopped bringing her to the multitude of doctors, they agreed on the general consensus, just glad that their only daughter was fine.

"Hermione, all the doctors tested for skin cancer, and other extraneous conditions, vitiligo is the only one that makes sense." Her mother told her softly.

"I don't care what the doctor said, it's not that!"

"We can't keep taking you to different consultations to get the same answer, you're not dying-" William Granger started.

"I never said I was dying! I just want to know what it is!"

Her mother wrapped her in a hug.

"It doesn't matter what it is, because it's you, and we love you, no matter what it is, okay?" Jane Granger replied in a warm soothing voice.

Hermione simply nodded in response.

"Can we just not call it vitiligo? I despise the word now." Hermione confessed.

"Of course, dear, what shall we call it then?" Her father chuckled.

Hermione thought for a minute, her copper eyes transfixed on the floor while debating what to rename her 'spot'.

"Atticus." She decided with a smile.

"Like Atticus Finch in _To Kill a Mockingbird_?"

Hermione gave him a small nod, while her father smiled with approval.

Unfortunately for her, Atticus, while having a new name, was still very visible, giving her classmates yet another reason to pick on her. Hermione did not really understand why they continued to tease and taunt her, it was not as if this was something she could have controlled; in fact, if she had any choice in the matter she would not have Atticus to begin with. Although, the fact remained that Atticus was still there, and as long as he remained, she would be teased for it; as a result of this she began immersing herself in books instead of listening to the constant mocking.

* * *

The day that Hermione received her Hogwarts letter, the dots connected in her mind: She was a witch; it explained the weird occurrences that would happen when she was dejected, exasperated, or ecstatic.

"_It might also explain Atticus,"_ She thought, curiously looking down at her left forearm.

Atticus had not grown even a millimeter in diameter, the pasty white color remained exactly the same as it had always been, completely marring her normal walnut complexion.

Maybe Atticus was an indicator that she was a witch this entire time, perhaps all witches had a similar mark. Hermione continued to pull on her wiry black curls while she reread the Hogwarts letter. According to the letter, a professor from Hogwarts would escort her to get her school supplies. Hermione decided that then would be the perfect time to ask about Atticus. Another witch would surely have an explanation for the spot, surely a knowledgeable witch would know, at least Hermione hoped she would know.

"So, witches don't all have a mark like mine?" Hermione questioned the older witch.

"No, although yours is quite unique, perhaps it's a birthmark?" The professor suggested kindly.

"Perhaps." Hermione mumbled, covering Atticus with her right hand in embarrassment.

Her mark was neither muggle or magic, it was just there, which frustrated Hermione to no end. Everything has a purpose, surely Atticus did too.

"Come now," Professor McGonagall kindly told the young witch. "We must get you fitted for your robes."

"Robes?"

"Yes, they are a part of Hogwarts' uniform, they must be worn to and from classes."

The little witch began to smile at that, a robe would be the perfect way to hide Atticus, she could be a normal witch.

* * *

It was made very clear to Hermione by many of her new classmates that she would never be a normal witch, and it had nothing to do with her spot, seeing as she hid Atticus under her robe. Hermione knew she was a clever girl, but did not comprehend that her cleverness could come off as swottiness, which led to many of her housemates ignoring her. Not only that, but being a muggle-born was also very frowned upon among certain groups of students. She found this out the hard way her first week in the library.

"Is it alright if I sit with you?" A small voice asked.

Hermione looked up from the giant tome she was reading to see a blonde boy about her age, with steel grey eyes standing there holding two very large books of his own.

"Of course!" She nodded with a smile.

"Thank you. None of my friends want to start studying yet, but I want to be top of my class, so it's best that I start now."

"I just find it all quite fascinating. I've never been this excited to do homework in my life," Hermione replied with a small giggle.

The boy grinned back.

"You're not so bad for a Gryffindor, what's your name?"

"I'm Hermione Granger, and you?"

The blonde looked very confused at this.

"I'm Draco Malfoy. Where are you from exactly?" He questioned, drumming his fingers anxiously over his book.

"I'm from London." She replied easily, confused why her new friend seemed so suddenly anxious.

"Muggle London?" Draco prodded.

"Well... yes," Hermione hesitated.

"I've got to go, it was er- a pleasure talking to you," He concluded, standing up and hurrying out.

Hermione sat in silence bewildered over the strange conversation she just had.

An older girl, at a neighboring table took pity on the poor perplexed girl.

"He's a pureblood, and has a very strict pureblood family. He believes he should not be associating with muggleborns like yourself. It's how he, and a few other students were raised." The girl explained.

That just puzzled Hermione even more.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"I know," the older witch sighed, "Old pureblood families are strange like that."

Hermione just nodded in response, yearning to understand more about this strange magical world.

* * *

_**AN **_

Just wanted to give a BIGG shoutout to my bestie Rachel for helping me edit this! PLEASE follow her art account on instagram , her art is amazing and so is she! I couldn't have made this story without her so please show her and her art some love !


	2. Chapter 2

_**CHAPTER TWO**_

"Narcissa, do you see that?"

"Yes, he has the famous Malfoy eyes."

"No, look at his left forearm."

Her blue eyes quickly glanced down at the small infant she held in her arms.

"It's just a beauty mark dear." Narcissa soothed, continuing to rock the Malfoy heir.

Lucius squinted at the dark brown circle on his son's arm.

"But what if it isn't?" He pressed.

"There's no use in worrying now-"

"Unless the Dark Lord happens to see the mark! Narcissa, if that's what I think it is, the Dark Lord will not be pleased. His soul belongs to-"

"Shh, you'll wake Draco and I just got him to stop fussing."

Lucius stopped and watched his son sleep peacefully, cradled in his mother's arms.

"I don't know what to do Cissa," Lucius sighed.

"You're a wizard, Lucius. Glamour charms exist." His wife teased.

"But-"

"Lucius, if the mark is what you think it is, we will do all that we can do to protect him. For now we have no reason to think that that it is anything other than an oversized mole; there's nothing to worry about. If suspicions are raised, we will hide the mark. No one will be the wiser."

Lucius gave his wife a kiss on the forehead.

"You truly are my better half"

"I ease our minds, why don't you research the mark, so we can have a better idea as to what it is. Just for us."

"Anything for you, dear," Lucius replied with a soft grin, heading out of the nursery.

* * *

"Draco, do you remember the charm we taught you?" Narcissa pressed her son.

"Yes, mother, I remember the disillusionment charm." Draco sighed, fidgeting in his robes.

"And do you remember-"

"To hide the mole at all times, even while using the charm? Yes, I believed you mentioned it a few million times," The eleven-year-old huffed.

"Hush now, Draco, your mother just wants to protect you."

"Protect me from what?"

Narcissa sighed, reaching out for Lucius's hand.

"Oh my little dragon, there is so much to protect you from. We will tell you everything in due time."

The Malfoy mother gave her son a kiss on his forehead, which he promptly rubbed off, complaining of her lipstick being smeared on his skin.

"Now, you don't want to be late boarding the train," Lucius interrupted sternly.

"Goodbye, mother. Goodbye, father. I will write once a week!" Draco shouted barrelling his way toward the train.

"Are you sure this is the safest idea?" Narcissa whispered.

"Hogwarts is the safest place for him to be in a time like this." He nodded.

"And you are sure there are no more eligible pureblood-"

"None, the best we can hope for is a halfblood, but we can't worry about that now. Our focus is him, he has to remain alive for anything to truly happen."

Narcissa squeezed her husband's hand as the Hogwart's Express departed from the station; apparating back to the safety of their Manor, they tried to put their worry to rest.

* * *

"Drakeyyy," A shrill voice whined.

"Parkinson, for the last time I will not dance with you!"

"Why not?"

"Because I find you utterly revolting, especially when you throw yourself all over me. It's completely undignified, what would your mother say?"

"Fine, but you have no idea what you're missing! Come on, Marcus, let's dance!" Pansy huffed, grabbing an unsuspecting Marcus Flint's arm and dragging him to the other dancers.

"You really shoved poor Flint into the arms of a horny dragon," Blaise Zabini chuckled.

Draco merely shrugged at that, swirling the punch he had in his cup.

"She just thinks you're playing hard to get," Theodore Nott added.

"She just doesn't think; that's her problem." Draco snapped.

Both of his friends laughed in agreement.

"Look, mate, you're going to have to get with one of these witches sooner or later. Might as well go through 'em and take your pick now while you still have a chance," Theo suggested.

Draco knew that he was slightly stunted compared to his friends romantically speaking. His only real snogs came from Parkinson forcing herself on him. The truth of the matter was that none of the girls around him seemed worth his time. They were all dull, acting exactly the same as one another. Draco found no point in pretending to be entertained by their idle babble when he could be focusing on other more important matters. Like beating Hermione-bloody-Granger in potions for once.

"Merlins balls!" Blaise shouted, spewing his punch everywhere.

"Zabini."

"Mate, look up!" Blaise continued excitedly, pointing toward the dance floor.

Draco looked up, momentarily ignoring the punch that was spat all over him.

"No bleeding way," Draco muttered.

"Mudblood sure does clean up if she's whoring herself out to Potter or Weasel tonight?" Theo chuckled.

"Damn, what I would give to make her pureblood for the night," Blaise whistled.

"Who knew she was hiding all that under her frumpy robes."

"Gryffindor's Golden Girl is truly surprising; now we know why the Wonder Idiots hide her away."

While his friends continued to commentate on Granger's new-found attractiveness, Draco just stared. There was no denying, she was by far the best looking witch in the room. Her dark terracotta skin was brought out by her periwinkle blue dress. Her normally coarse and stringy hair was plaited on her head. She seemed so carefree, and in the moment. Something Draco had never witnessed with her before. Her usual uptight swotty manner seemed like a distant dream now that she was waving her arms around while dancing. That's when Draco saw _it_.

"Have either of you ever noticed that white spot on Granger's arm?" Draco asked suddenly.

Blaise squinted trying to see what his friend was referring to.

"No, but I see a beautiful pair of-"

"Never seen it until tonight," Theo replied, cutting Blaise off, "must be a muggle thing."

Draco just nodded, absently rubbing his left forearm.

"Must be."

"Oi fellas! Look at Parkinson humping on Flint! What a sight for sore eyes!'" Blaise howled.

Draco rolled his eyes as his friends laughed. He could not seem to take his eyes off of Granger for the rest of the night. Of course if one were to ask about it he would give the excuse that he was staring that atrocious muggle mark on her arm, and not at how her smile seemed to shine with her new perfect teeth.

* * *

"Raise your left sleeve young Malfoy, it is time."

Draco did as he was told, with shaky hands he slowly rolled his sleeve up, baring his left forearm to the Dark Lord.

Voldemort looked down at the sixteen-year-old's arm.

"Narcissa!" He bellowed.

"Yes, my lord," She answered,entering the room and refusing to look her son in the eyes.

"Care to explain the mark on your son's arm?" Voldemort questioned.

"It-it is just a birthmark, my lord, he was born with it."

"You know very well that is no ordinary birthmark."

"Lucius and I assumed, my lord, that it was, because a mark like that has not-"

"Been seen in centuries, yes, I am fully aware." Voldemort stated, glaring at the spot.

Draco was frozen in terror, he was confused at what was happening between the Dark Lord and his mother.

"His soul belongs to another, I cannot take it."

Narcissa breathed a small sigh of relief, and Draco felt his terror ease.

"However, to ensure your family's and his loyalty, he will have to murder Albus Dumbledore before the school year's end."

"But, my lord, he is just a child!" Narcissa gasped.

"Silence witch! It was not I who got caught at the Ministry, but your foolish husband. For the Malfoy family to regain my favor either Draco kills Dumbledore, or I kill you."

"I accept," Draco declared.

"Draco-" His mother whispered.

"Excellent, I'm glad we agree." Voldemort hissed. "Everyone out! I must talk to Draco in private to ensure he will not fail his mission."

* * *

AN Just want to say thanks for the read & reviews !

EVERYONE PLEASE GO FOLLOW MY EDITOR AND FRIEND on instagram and tumblr ! She has helped me so much with editing this story and motivating me to write ! Thank you Rachel !


	3. Chapter 3

_**CHAPTER THREE**_

Eighth year at Hogwarts was an unusual luxury, but a much needed one. After the war had ended, many students came together to rebuild their home. Many witches and wizards poured their magic into the school that had given so much to them.

It was early November now, and the students seemed to fall back into a normal rhythm. Hermione Granger was one of the returning eighth year students. She had always found solace in learning, and finishing off her Hogwarts studies with no threat of danger seemed more than ideal to her. That was how she managed to find herself in the middle of another one of Professor Binn's lectures, eagerly taking notes.

"The last thing we will be covering today is a little-known occurrence in the wizarding world today. It is often cast aside as myth since it's been centuries since the last known marking. Anima Marcam is the marking that appears on witches and wizards whose magic is perfectly fit for one another. The markings will be identical in shape, reflect the skin tone of their match, and appear in the same location for both individuals. Often times Anima Marcam gets misidentified as a mole, or skin discoloration, when it is, in fact, much more. Many have researched heavily into Anima Marcam looking for how it occurs and any things that cause it, but it remains a mystery even to the most knowledgeable of researchers. It truly is a rarity of magic, a privilege for anyone lucky enough to receive an individual that perfectly matches them."

Suddenly Atticus made sense to Hermione. It wasn't a case of vitiligo as she had been told her whole life, no, she was bonded to someone; she just didn't know who.

Unbeknownst to her, a pair of silver eyes were trained on the back of her head throughout the lecture. The owner determined to come clean about their matching marks.

* * *

The day continued normally for Hermione Granger, besides glancing at people's left forearm, but other than that, completely normal.

"Merlin, I've got to stop" Hermione thought to herself as she checked Neville's arm for what seemed like the hundredth time. She pushed her plate away, and sighed.

"Everything alright Hermione?" Neville asked, noticing her unusual demeanor.

"Everything is honestly fine, it's just that-" She trailed off.

"That what?"

"Neville, can you keep a secret? It's truly nothing major, just- I don't want everyone knowing this about me. I want to live a normal last year at Hogwarts and if this were to get out, I highly doubt that would happen."

"I understand, and of course you can tell me anything."

Hermione looked around the Great Hall to find everyone chatting about, completely oblivious to Neville and her talking. It seemed like an average lunch and Hermione was determined to keep it that way.

"Do you remember when Professor Binns was talking about Anima Marcam?"

"Yes, I find the whole subject of soulmates fascinating-" Neville started.

"Soulmates?"

"Well yes, that's typically how people in the wizarding world refer to that. Especially since it's so rare, the idea of a soulmate."

Hermione's face began to redden at the thought of having a soulmate. Of course, she had always wanted to settle down, but the idea of one person being magically bonded for life unnerved her to say the least.

Hermione began to roll up the sleeve on her arm, showing Atticus to Neville.

"I think that I have Anima Marcam. I've had this mark since I was about one, and there's no other muggle or magical explanation for it." Hermione whisper.

Neville's eyes widened in surprise when he saw Atticus, and would continue to glance down at the parchment white mark on Hermione's chestnut skin.

"Do you know who has the matching mark?"

"No idea, I just do not know where to begin. This is a lot of information to take in at once. It's slightly overwhelming."

"I understand." Neville sympathized, "maybe going to the library to do some research will do you some good?" He suggested.

Hermione broke into a huge grin.

"Neville, you are absolutely brilliant! I'll be seeing you in the common room later tonight! Don't wait up!"

Neville just shook his head as the curly headed witch hustled out of the Great Hall, practically bolting for the library.

Hermione was in such a rush, that she almost missed the quiet sobs coming from an empty classroom.

Almost.

Peeking her head in she saw a first, or possibly second year on the floor, crying.

It was a Ravenclaw boy, Hermione did not know his name, but the small wizard was not alone in the classroom. Sitting beside him was none other than Draco Malfoy, who seemed to be giving the child awkward pats on the back.

Hermione's breathing hitched when she saw the blonde's unfortunate excuse for comforting, but to be fair it seemed as if Malfoy was trying his hardest to listen to the Ravenclaw.

"No one in my house likes me, it's all because of my last name. It's not fair, I came to Hogwarts to learn, not to terrorize!" The brunette boy wailed.

"I know the feeling, but lucky you, you still have time to show them that they are the foolish ones. Bletchley, you are nothing like your older brothers, it is quite obvious. Don't let what your housemates think dictate how you view yourself. In the mean time, you can always branch out of your house, they'll come around eventually. Until then you still have me, yeah?"

"Yeah."

With a few sniffles, Ferguson Bletchley, gave Draco a quick hug. Wiping away his tears with the back of his hand, he stumbled out of the classroom, right into Hermione.

"Oh, sorry Ms. Granger." He stuttered.

Hermione's face bright red from not only witnessing such a vulnerable moment, but being caught watching, just silently nodded and stepped to the side for the wizard to move by

Hermione continued to stand in the door frame, watching Malfoy stand up slowly from his position on the floor. His sleeves were rolled up, and that's when Hermione saw it.

A matching mark.

Her eyes widened as she glanced down at her forearm, that bore the same mark.

"Malfoy." She stuttered.

"Granger, we should talk about" He featured toward their arms, "later."

"The library? In about an hour?"

Draco gave a quick nod, and the hazel eyed witch seemed to dart from the classroom.

* * *

"So, are we-?" She questioned looking at him.

"Bonded? Yeah." He whispered back, refusing to meet her gaze.

Hermione looked at him. He looked almost green; his hand was gripping the arm of his chair while he looked at the table in concentration.

"Is it really that bad? Being bonded to me?" Hermione asked.

Draco snapped his head up and looked at her with extreme confusion.

"No, it's not that, Granger. You're perfect- that's the problem! You're this image of hope and goodness and fuck-you're stuck with me. It's not fair to you, and it doesn't make sense. You deserve better, a good man-"

"Malfoy, you are a good man. You may have been a prat of a boy, but I've seen you grow. You've changed, and you're trying to better yourself. That's all anyone can do. Besides, I'm not perfect, I've actually been told I'm a bit of a swot at times."

Hermione gave him a small smile, and he just stared back at her expressionless.

"Trust your magic," the witched urged.

The blonde sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"I wish we could start over." He sighed, sinking further into the library chair.

"To be honest, I'm glad we can't"

"Why?"

"I've always liked a challenge." Hermione grinned, causing Draco to roll his eyes.

"That's an understatement," he mumbled.

"Besides, I admire how hard you're trying to better yourself. If we started over, I wouldn't be able to witness the transformation."

Draco snorted at that, appearing more relaxed with the witch that sat in front of him. He would have never thought that he, of all wizards, would be able to find his perfect match. He couldn't even dream that there would be such a thing for him. To add to it all, his perfect match was Hermione-bloody-Granger. It was impractical, illogical, and just dumb luck, but Draco could not help but feel content looking into her bronze eyes. Her coiled hair was thrown in a very loose bun, that looked like it was about to burst out at a moment's notice. Just looking at her soft smile made Draco want to prove to himself, and anyone else, that he was good enough for Gryffindor's golden girl.

"I want to take you out, on a proper date." Draco announced suddenly.

"Oh- well, I would like that," Hermione replied, looking anxious and slightly out of place.

"Surely the mighty Hermione Granger isn't nervous about a date," He teased, making Hermione blush.

"She just might be," She quipped back, trying to regain her composure.

Draco stood up from the table, giving a little laugh.

"Meet me tomorrow at the Entrance Hall around ten o'clock, and then we can head to Hogsmeade, if that's fine with you."

Hermione looked up at the blonde, who was trying his best to keep his cool in the situation. Knowing that he was equally as worried as her seemed to ease her nerves.

"It sounds perfectly fine to me." She smiled.

"Good." He smiled back.

"Very good."

Suddenly the spots on their arms made all the sense in the world, and the peace that came along with knowing their meaning was almost as comforting as the knowledge that they had someone like a soulmate always connected to them.

* * *

AN- so sorry this final chapter took forever to be uploaded, I just graduated high school and now I'm working as a nanny so it's just been go-go-go for me. This final chapter is rough, but at least it's up! I might go back and add an extra scene that I was thinking of but for now this will have to do! Again so sorry for how delayed this was, please forgive me it's been a crazy couple of months.

PLEASE follow my editor and friend on instagram ! She's helped me so much with this story and her art is AMAZING ! Anytime she draws Draco i cry. sadly she was also super busy these few months and couldn't edit all of this chapter, so please excuse the crappy quality because my writing is sloppy...


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